Basalt & Rural Fire District Sales Tax

Basalt & Rural Fire Protection District levies no sales tax today. Ballot Issue 7A adds a 0.55% sales tax, or 55 cents on each $100, on every transaction in the district that the state taxes, excluding groceries and other exempt items. The money pays for fire protection and emergency services as service demands increase, "INCLUDING BUT NOT LIMITED TO" a year-round wildland fire division, hazardous fuels reduction and wildfire mitigation, fire suppression, emergency medical and rescue capabilities, related equipment, apparatus and facilities, and the associated operating, maintenance, personnel and capital improvement costs. The first full fiscal year begins January 1, 2027, and the question sets no end date.

Fire Chief Scott Thompson told the Roaring Fork Fire Rescue Authority board on July 21 that additional tax funding would support hiring a wildland team and about 15 positions while keeping flexibility for future spending. At that meeting the board discussed ballot language that highlights wildfire mitigation and community projects without limiting future use. On July 7 the finance director told the district boards that without the sales tax, the districts would have to draw on reserves and could not pay for the added staff.

Eagle County's TABOR notice gives the district's estimate of the maximum increase as $1,518,000 in 2027 and puts 2027 spending without the increase at $9,045,909. In later years the amount is whatever the 0.55% rate raises. The Eagle County ballot prints the first-year amount as "$1.518 MILLION" and the Pitkin County ballot as "$1,518,000 MILLION." The notice lists the district's fiscal year spending at $4,789,259 in 2022, $4,151,979 in 2023, $9,212,867 in 2024, $9,323,795 in 2025 and an estimated $9,279,013 in 2026.

On August 18, while the authority's attorney was working on the ballot question, the chief told the authority board that for the Snowmass and Basalt ballot question "they will overstate revenues to avoid a Tabor refund," according to the board's minutes.

The question's closing clause lets the district collect, retain and spend all district revenues notwithstanding any revenue limits provided by law. That covers every dollar Basalt & Rural takes in, not only the new tax, and it carries no end date.

The Basalt & Rural and Snowmass-Wildcat boards each voted on May 19 to put a 1.5% sales tax on the November ballot. On July 7 both boards rescinded that vote and approved 0.55%. The chief had found discrepancies in the state revenue report, and the consultant, TischlerBise, had added missed sources such as online sales and third-party lodging. The updated analysis estimated that the rate would generate approximately $3.5 million across the two districts. Snowmass-Wildcat's tax is a separate question, its Ballot Issue 6B. In the Town of Basalt, the town's Ballot Issue 3A asks for a 0.5% sales tax increase from January 1, 2027.